For me, Chris Cleave is three for three on completely engaging stories with Gold. I was riveted by Incendiary and Little Bee, and this tale of two Olympic cyclists was no different. Lots of plot twists and turns, intense scenes (I really felt the action of the racing scenes), beautiful metaphor and a little girl at the heart of it all that will win you over.

Oh I just LOVED this book. So unexpected and sweet; it's the very definition of POIGNANT. I was moved and touched by this coming of age story of Holling Hoodhood, set in Long Island during the time of the Vietnam War. It's got everything: laugh out loud humor, tragedy, action and drama. A quick middle grade (Newberry Award winning) must read.

A beautiful, and also very haunting and sad, coming of age novel. "The sun kept on with its slipping away, and I thought how many small good things in the world might be resting on the shoulders of something terrible." OH, how I loved this passage. I felt so very emotionally drained after reading this book, but I did enjoy being thrust back in time (to the 80s) with June, the excellently fleshed out awkward and insecure teen protagonist. Tuck in if you like a tear-jerker.

I went and put this book on hold as soon as I got done with Gone Girl and I liked this one just as well. Crazy intense and DARK, as the title implies. It was really hard to read about children being murdered, so I tried to quickly scan those parts because I'm not normally a fan of crime/thriller novels. But these books are so un-put-down-able. And her protagonist, Libby, is sort of horrible and sort of lovable all at the same time. Gillian Flynn creates some incredibly crazy complex characters and I'm in awe of her talent for writing stories full of tension and suspense.

At first it was hard to get into reading this book, due to the stream of consciousness writing style. But, it's well worth getting into the rhythm of it to enjoy this lovely post-apocolyptic story. That seems contradictive, but it's really quite beautiful and evocative. Yes, there is some gut wrenching stuff; but it's SO much easier to handle than reading The Road. I stupidly read that book when I was, oh, about 4 months postpartum with my first child; I'm still horrified when I think about it... Anyhow, there are more hopeful themes in The Dog Stars and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I've never read Kinsella's books (nope, not a single Shopaholic), but decided to check this one out based on Everyday Reading's recommendation. It was just what I was looking for: light and fluffy chick lit. I'm just disappointed whenever these books have a totally spineless and rather clueless heroine. But, it was a fun little story with a fun concept.

I really like this series compared to a lot of other YA out there right now. It's highly original, funny, snarky, romantic, dramatic and (most of all) has a kick ass heroine. It didn't have the same amount of romance and humor as Daughter of Smoke and Bone, but I think that to move forward, the story had to go in a more dark direction. I was glad to spend a bit of time in Taylor's fully realized non-human world. Hopefully the next book will gravitate toward lighter themes.

Ah, another coming of age novel - I've read quite a few this year. As with a number of them, this one was also a bit on the depressing side. However, I turned the pages with great anticipation - how would Michael turn out, would he be OK, would his father come back? A lot of interesting themes and I liked the juxtaposition of the fantastical idea that his father might actually be on the moon and the gritty realism of their day to day lives. It was touching and thought provoking novel.

I DEVOURED this book! Such a fun read. It's like Titanic meets Downton Abbey with a little Sense and Sensibility thrown in for good measure.

I think I need to be done with coming of age novels for awhile, as they're all kind of maudlin. This one is no exception. It was well written (I also have a soft spot in my heart for epistolary novels) and it's evocative of many of the feelings I had as a teenager. I just thought the relationships rang a little false and that it's doubtful all these different social circles overlapped/that a bunch of seniors would befriend a dorky freshman. But, what do I know, being 20 years out of high school ...